A storm was coming now that Father had passed. Some competitors would think it the ideal situation to move in and try to take what was ours. I had to be cautious, even more so now.
Maybe the right thing to do was to send Josh away. Not only him, but Mother, my cousins—Jiro’s daughters—and Mimi. I needed to make sure they were safe before the thunderclouds hit.
So why did the thought of having Josh leave hurt my heart?
For the first time, I didn’t know what to do.
“Hey,” Josh uttered, stepping closer to me.
I blinked and met his gaze.
“Where did you just go?” he asked, reading me so well.
Smirking, I shook my head. “Nowhere really.”
“What do you need?”
You.
Only you.
The realisation had my eyes widening. I didn’t understand how it happened so quickly, but I was well on my way into falling for Joshua.
“What?” Josh demanded, his hands tightening on my waist.
Shaking my head, I ran my hands down to his stomach and rested my forehead against his chest. “Nothing.”
“Taro,” he growled in the back of his throat. I loved it.
“Joshua,” I replied with a smile.
“Babe, what’s goin’ on?”
“Honestly, I’m finding everything a lot to take in right at this moment.” The family, the business, my father’s death, and my feelings for Josh.
“Then don’t.”
A chuckle fell from me. “If only it was that easy.”
“It is. Take today for yourself. No one will think bad of you for it. Shit, every boss has time off. You have people at your back to help you. Let them.”
I couldn’t remember the last day where I wasn’t doing something for the businesses or family. There was still so much to do.
“The funeral’s organised, right? Already has been for a long time. Business stuff can wait until after the funeral. Babe, you need this. Let me take care of you.”
“How?”
He chuckled. “By telling Ryo to run things while we rest in the bedroom. It’s all for you, of course.”
Grinning, I lifted my head. “Of course.”
“What do you say?”
How could I say no since Josh was right? I could use the time without family and business.
The door opened, and Ryo stuck his head in. “I agree with Ruin,” he stated.
Snorting, I rolled my eyes. “I knew you would.” Taking Josh’s hand, I started towards the door. “All right, I’ll take some time, but if anything comes up….”
“I will contact you,” Ryo replied.
“Yes.” I looked at Josh. “Also, can we go and see my mother and Mimi?”
He smiled. “Yeah, Taro.”
Taro. I did love hearing him say my name.
Mother had been sleeping when I checked on her, but she was in good hands with our aunt. She was my mother’s sister, after all. When we arrived at Mimi’s room, the man I had half noticed before comforting her outside Father’s room opened the door. He wore a Hawks MC patch. Seeing it reassured me my sister was in good company. Josh wouldn’t have had one of his brothers be here for her without knowing there was something between them.
Though I had thought Mimi was still getting over Josh, so who was this man to her?
“Hey,” he whispered with a chin lift.
“Cowboy, this is Taro, Mimi’s brother. We’re stoppin’ in to check on her,” Josh explained.
“Nice to meet you officially, but Mimi’s havin’ a rest right now,” Cowboy said to me before his gaze dropped to our clasped hands. I tried to pull mine away, but Josh held strong.
Wasn’t he worried about what his friend would think?
I wanted to look at him, to know what he was thinking, but I didn’t. Instead, I replied, “You also. Though, I would like to know how you’ve become close to my sister.”
His face flushed. It was strangely endearing coming from a biker, especially when he stammered, “W-Well… um, you see….”
Josh chuckled. “Cowboy’s from Ballarat. They’ve been gettin’ close before Mimi came here.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of her.”
“Good. Because I would hate to kill a brother to Ruin,” I told him.
Cowboy chuckled, until he looked at both of our straight faces. “Wait, you actually mean that.”
Josh sighed. “He does.” He pulled our hands up and kissed the back of mine. “But I’ll keep him under control.”
It was my turn for my cheeks to burn. Josh really didn’t care how he acted in front of a brother, even when it was so out of character for him and would shock people who knew him. I heard Cowboy choke on his own saliva, but I couldn’t look away from the man beside me.
He really didn’t care.
It surprised me to the point of warmth, the sensation attacking my head, heart, and soul in all the good, mushy ways.
“You two…?”
“Yeah, brother. But don’t tell anyone, since I haven’t.”
Cowboy nodded. “Got it.”
“Tell Mimi we’ll do dinner,” I ordered.
“Okay,” I heard him say before I dragged Josh towards our room.
Our room.
It was no longer mine. But ours.
Again, how did it happen so fast?
Because he’s different from anyone I have been with before.
“Where’s the fire?” Josh huffed out a laugh.
Opening the door, I waved off the guards from checking the room and strode in, slamming the door behind us. I wrapped my arms around Josh’s neck and kissed him like it would be our last. I pushed everything I felt into the kiss and deepened it, drawing out a moan from the man in my arms. He gripped me tightly around the waist. I never wanted it to end. I could do this every day and night for the rest of my life because his mouth, his body, his heart and soul were made for me.
He was mine.
Mine.
Breaking the kiss, we tried to catch our breaths as we stared into each other’s gazes. Josh brushed his fingers through my hair.
“You’re fuckin’ gorgeous.”
Shit. My heart couldn’t take any more. It was already full.
But I couldn’t lose him.
I couldn’t.
If I had to give things up for him, I would. It wouldn’t be easy, but he would be worth it.
“What are you thinkin’?”
“That I want to suck your dick.”
Several noises dropped from him at the same time, a snort, laugh, and groan. “Jesus, Taro.”
Sliding a hand down, I palmed his hardness behind his jeans. I smirked. “Look who’s ready.”
“I’m not sure—”
“If you deny me this, pet, I’ll pout all day long while I go back to work.”
Another chuckle left him while he shook his head. “You’re crazy.”
“Just a little.”
He cupped my cheeks. “Taro, you don’t have to distract yourself with that. We don’t even have to talk. We can sit around and watch stupid shit while doin’ nothin’.”
I lifted my hands to grip his wrists. “I’m not doing this to distract myself. I want to because you make me feel so much. Selfishly, I want to pleasure you in ways where you’ll never want a woman to touch you again, because all you can do is think about me, my mouth, and body.”